Compliance Officer - Gaziantep

About Bahar:

Bahar Organization is an independent non-profit and non-governmental organization that provides humanitarian aid to vulnerable people without any discrimination in all its forms. BO is operating to respond to the needs and basic requirements of the humanitarian crisis in Syria in the middle of the affected communities caused by the conflict the basic principles of BO’s activities are to enhance the basic living standards of the affected population by delivering humanitarian aid based on the needs.

Purpose of Position:

Bahar is looking for an objective, diligent, and professional Compliance Officer to join our dynamic Compliance & Internal Controls Department. The Compliance Officer, working closely with the Compliance Manager, will be responsible for ensuring that Bahar's operations and procedures comply with legal regulations, donor requirements, and internal policies. The officer will contribute to improving the organization’s operations by adopting a systematic approach to enhancing the effectiveness of risk management and control processes.

The Compliance Officer will play a crucial role in ensuring that the organization's policies and procedures, as well as donor requirements and applicable laws and regulations, are fully adhered to. These highly analytical professionals will conduct regular internal audits, implement organizational policies, and design and maintain control systems to mitigate risks.

In this role, the Compliance Officer will perform a variety of tasks, including reviewing organizational processes to ensure compliance. The ideal candidate will possess excellent communication skills and a thorough understanding of the latest industry standards, procedures, and regulations.

Job Duties and Responsibilities:

• Assist in executing comprehensive audit plans.
• Support in conducting periodic audits of organizational procedures and processes to ensure compliance with internal and external regulations.
• Collaborate in the follow-up and implementation of recommendations from external auditors, statutory auditors, and special-purpose audits.
• Assist in reviewing budgets and cost allocations to align with organizational standards.
• Monitor and report on operational standards across Bahar projects to ensure consistency.
• Support in monitoring the application of organizational policies.
• Help design and maintain control systems to detect and address violations of legal rules and internal policies.
• Provide inputs for recommending improvements to internal procedures and processes to mitigate risks and prevent fraud.
• Assist in overseeing business operations related to compliance, including policies, procedures, and controls.
• Help evaluate the efficiency of control systems and suggest enhancements to optimize their performance.
• Maintain an updated knowledge of applicable laws, donor requirements, and regulations to assist in ensuring compliance in grants management and operational practices.
• Assist in fiscal monitoring and financial training for offices in Syria, Erbil, and HQ.
• Assist in reviewing financial reports for donors, including narrative inputs and uploads.
• Support the preparation of payroll re-classifications and maintain accurate financial records.
• Contribute to drafting and monitoring annual operating and capital budgets.
• Help with monthly budget-to-actual analyses and quarterly forecast reviews and communicate findings to financial leadership.
• Assist in facilitating training sessions on legal, compliance, and accountability issues for employees.
• Help create accountability tools and ensure their application in project implementation.
• Contribute to developing and maintaining a project audit schedule to ensure donor and regulatory compliance.
• Assist in establishing and implementing audit protocols aligned with donor and International Standards on Auditing (ISA).
• Help prepare detailed audit reports with recommendations for improvements.
• Assist in identifying trends in physical and digital filing systems and recommend process improvements.
• Maintain and update a database of record-keeping observations and recommendations.
• Verify the completeness of substantiating documents against contractual terms and conditions.
• Help develop accountability tools and support their application across all projects.
• Maintain open communication with management and audit committees to provide updates on compliance matters.
• Assist in preparing reports that reflect compliance outcomes and recommendations.
• Participate in continuous knowledge development on donor rules, best practices, and performance standards.
• Provide input for procedural enhancements based on audit findings and organizational needs.

Academic Qualification/s and Professional Experience:

• BS degree in Business, Accounting or Economics or relevant education.
• At least 1 year of relevant experience in Humanitarian aid projects and complicated contexts.
• A professional certificate from a reputable certifying body preferable such as CIA/CMA/CPA
• Proven working experience as Compliance Officer or similar roles
• Advanced computer skills on MS Office, accounting software, and databases
• Ability to manipulate large amounts of data and to compile detailed reports
• Reasonable knowledge of auditing standards and procedures, laws, rules, and regulations
• High attention to detail and excellent analytical skills
• Sound independent judgment
• Experience in operations supports role, with analysis and/or interpretation of budgets and grants preferred.
• Experience working with local/international nonprofit preferred.
• Excellent analytical skills and ability to solve problems are required; the ability to communicate financial information to non-financial staff is also required.
• Intermediate writing and verbal communication skills in English.

Work Environment and Conditions:

• Willingness to work in a location different from that stated in the contract.
• Willingness to work for extra hours as necessary.

Evaluation Criteria:

• Periodic reports submitted to the direct supervisor.
• Monitoring and evaluation processes conducted by the Organizational Development Department.
• Reports of attendance, absence, and professional compliance submitted by HR Department.

Safeguarding

• Actively learns about safeguarding and integrates it into their work incl with external stakeholders and direct reports if applicable.
• Practices the values of Bahar as detailed in the Code of Conduct and safeguarding policies including respecting the dignity and well-being of community participants and fellow staff members.
• Holds themselves accountable for making appropriate decisions that impact community members and team members and takes responsibility for their personal and professional behavior.
• Encourages openness, transparency and communication in their team; encourages team members to make any reports if they have any concerns using internal reporting mechanisms (i.e. Hotline, HR etc.).
• Demonstrates a high level of integrity and treats others with respect.

How to apply

Interested candidates should apply by completing the form at the following link: https://forms.gle/q3sYkZctWzcwqLmt9

The post will be filled as soon as a suitable candidate is found.

Women highly encouraged to apply for this position.

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.